Nursing brassiere



July 31, 1951 E. KELLER L NURSING BRASSIERE Filed March 7, 1950/ATTORNEYS Patented July 31, 1951 STATS T GFF 1 CE 1 Claim. 1

The present invention relates to women's underg'arments and moreparticularly to a brassiere especially constructed for use by a motherduring the period of nursing an infant.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a brassiere thatwill give the wearer the proper support during normal wear and alsowhile nursing. A brassiere embodying the present invention is adapted toenable the wearer to readily expose one breast for nursing withoutdisturbing the brassiere in its position on the body of the wearer orremoving the support it gives to the breast not exposed for nursing.

It is also the object of the present invention to provide a brassirewhich permits the exposure of one breast at nursing time very quicklyand very easily with a minimum of adjustment being necessary, andenabling the wearer to expose a breast for nursing without removing thebrassire from the body of the wearer.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a brassierethat is at all times, whether during normal wear or during nursing,extremely comfortable to wear and which lifts and aids in strengtheningthe breasts during the nursing months. It can thus be seen that abrassiere embodying the present invention is extremely desirable for amother during the nursing months having all the qualities necessary in agarment of this type. It is the combination of comfort, simplicity andconvenience that are the outstanding features of this novel garment.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will bemore readily understood from the following specification and drawing inwhich drawing:

Fig. l is a front view of a brassire embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a view thereof in position on the body of a wearer; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of the inside central attaching member.

The brassiere consists of the usual breast pockets or cups iii and II,body encircling bands i2 and I3 and shoulder straps l4 and IS. Thebreast pockets Hi and H may be of conventional design but in mypreferred embodiment they have an extra reinforcing member secured alongthe bottom edge of the breast pockets It and H to give added support,the reinforcing member consisting of a panel of material l6 secured tothe cups iii and I l by means of horizontal parallel rows of stitchingI1.

means of stitching l9. The band I8 is secured at its ends to the bodyencircling bands l2 and I3 and is adapted to fit snugly against the'bodyof the wearer. Separating the cups at the center of the brassicre arestrips 26 and ii. The strips 25 and 2| are secured at their lower endsto the band I 8 by the same stitching l9 and secured together alongtheir vertical center line by stitch ing 22.

The cup i8 is detachably secured to the body encircling band l2 by meansof the slide fastener or zipper 24 and is detachably secured to thecenter strips 26 and (it by the slide fastener 26. The same is true ofthe cup I l which is detachably secured to the body encircling band l3by means of slide fastener 25 and to the center strips 20 and El bymeans of slide fastener 21. The element of the slide fasteners 26 and 21that is secured to the strips 29 and 2! is located between these stripsso that the strips act as flaps to completely cover the slide fasteners26 and 21 when they are closed. The same is true of the slide fasteners24 and 25, there being flaps 28 and 29 secured to the body encirclingbands l2 and I3, to act as covers for the slide fasteners. The innerflaps 23 and the strip 2i protect the skin of the wearer from cominginto direct contact with the metal slide fasteners 24, 25, 26 and 21 andthe flaps 29 and strip 20 cover the slide fasteners 24 through 21 sothat they will not be observable through the outer garments of thewearer.

The shoulder strap 14 is secured at one end to the body encircling bandl2 and detachably secured to the top of the cup It by means of loop 58and hook 32, and the shoulder strap [5 is secured to the encircling bandIt at one end and the other end is detachably secured to the cup I I bymeans of loop SI and hook 33.

The ends of the shoulder straps l4 and [5 that are secured to the cupsl0 and H terminate respectively in elastic segments 34 and 35 which haveeyes 36 and 31, respectively secured at their free ends. A hook 38 issecured to the center strip 2| and is adapted to receive either of theeyes 36 and 37.

A detachable moisture repellent pad 39 of the type disclosed in myapplication No. 46,451 filed August 2'7, 1948, now Patent No. 2,502,524,may readily be adapted for use on a brassire embodyingthe invention setout herein.

The body encircling band l3 terminates in an elastic member ti] and theusual hook and eye fastening means for encircling the wearer's body withthe garment are provided.

If the wearer wishes to expose one breast for nursing, say the left-handbreast supported by cup I l, she would first detach the shoulder strapl5 from the cup I I by removing the hook 33 from the loop 3|. The eye 31would then be secured to the hook 38, so that the cup Ill would still becompletely supported, as can be seen in Fig. 2. Then, after opening theslide fasteners 25 and 21 the cup I I can be folded down completelyexposing the left-hand breast. By leaving the strap IS in its normalposition, detaching the hook 32 from the loop 30 and hooking the eye 36into hook 38, the cup I!) can be folded down and the right-hand breastexposed by the wearer without removing the support from the left-handbreast. It can thus be seen that either breast may be exposed fornursing without disturbing the brassiere in its position on the body ofthe wearer.

I claim:

A brassiere comprising a pair 01' breast pockets, 9. body encirclingband having a portion extending underneath the breast pockets, a centerstrip located between the breast pockets having its lower end secured tothe portion of the body REFERENCES CITED The following references are ofrecord in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 690,898 Smith Jan. '7, 19022,050,064 Neal Aug. 4, 1936 2,386,530 Witkower Oct. 9, 1945 2,407,220Blocker Sept. 10, 1946 2,492,303 Lo Cascio Dec. 2'7, 1949 2,496,348Hoenig Feb. 7, 1950

